Savings Cert Question

[bouhunter]

Just got off the phone with C&A. There is a savings cert on our March 2014 Jewel cruise for 150.00. We had the Emerald balcony discount of 125.00 and I figured what the heck 25.00 is 25.00 so I'd try and switch to the cert instead of the balcony C&A discount. I was informed they'll only apply the savings cert if it's one that came out in the same quarter as when the reservation was made (we booked the cruise last March onboard. Does this sound correct? Oh well, it's only 25.00 if so:)

[Clarea]

Just got off the phone with C&A. There is a savings cert on our March 2014 Jewel cruise for 150.00. We had the Emerald balcony discount of 125.00 and I figured what the heck 25.00 is 25.00 so I'd try and switch to the cert instead of the balcony C&A discount. I was informed they'll only apply the savings cert if it's one that came out in the same quarter as when the reservation was made (we booked the cruise last March onboard. Does this sound correct? Oh well, it's only 25.00 if so:)

You're not the first one who has reported this issue. Several people have reported this over the last few days. Either the folks in C&A are somehow misinformed, or Royal is changing their terms for the savings certificate. Try calling C&A again and mention that there are no such restrictions listed on the certificate.

[DHADEN]

They are really clamping down on the discounts.

 

My opinion - there are a lot of people who book cruises as soon as the itineraries come out (sometimes as long as 2 years out) and grab up the best cabins. (Grand Suites, Aft cabins, Hump cabins, etc.). I've heard of people with as many as 15 cruises booked, and then as it gets closer to "Final Payment", they pick the one or two they want and cancel the others. No loss because they still get their entire deposit back.

 

Other people (my opinion - us regular folks) who want to go on a cruise and try to plan 6-12 months in advance are screwed. I tried to book a cruise a year in advance, and get a Grand Suite and they are all taken. Then it's just a crap shoot as to when one is released.

 

I think RCI is limiting how you can take advantage of the discounts because of this.

I have even suggested to them that they should keep $100 of the deposit if someone books way out and then waits until final payment to cancel.

 

What do you think? Go ahead - bring it on. ;):p

[clott]

If you go and read the rules for the certificates it says they can only be used in the quarter. I noticed it this morning.

[Sherri914]

If you go and read the rules for the certificates it says they can only be used in the quarter. I noticed it this morning.

 

It says they must be used in the quarter. It doesn't say they must be applied to a booking made in that same quarter. The way the terms & conditions are worded just implies that you have to use the savings certificate in the quarter it's issued (in other words, before its expiration date). It doesn't specifically say that it cannot be applied to a cruise booked in a prior quarter. If that's what they intend, they need to specify. I, and many others, have been successful in having it applied to a booking made last year for an upcoming cruise. I do have a feeling though that they will clarify this on future certificates, and perhaps will limit the savings certificate to a cruise booked in the same quarter as the certificate is issued. ;)

[Clarea]

If you go and read the rules for the certificates it says they can only be used in the quarter. I noticed it this morning.

That part has always been the case to my knowledge. You always had to use the certificate in the quarter it was issued.

 

The issue that people are reporting is that C&A is telling them the cruise itself has to be booked in the same quarter that the certificates are valid. This would be a change from how certificates have been handled in the past.

[cruisenfever]

If you go and read the rules for the certificates it says they can only be used in the quarter. I noticed it this morning.

That has always been listed in the Terms & Conditions. Each Quarter new Certificates are made available and in some instances you will see a repeat for certain sailings depending on how they are selling.

[printingchick]

The new rules make no sense. I'm one of those who booked way in advance. (And those of us who do so HELP the cruise line in my opinion. Royal Caribbean has a MUCH better idea, MUCH sooner, about how well a particular sailing is filling up! A certain COMPETITOR actually offers a DISCOUNT for those of us who like to plan way ahead!)

 

Back to the topic at hand...

 

My cruise is in March 2014. If they tell me I can't apply the certificate to an existing booking, I can just cancel and re-book. What's to stop me? I'm not in danger of losing a prime cabin. I'm in an OV on Deck 3!!! I highly doubt there's a waiting list!

 

I booked with a travel agent who is having the certificate applied. I informed her of these issues I'd read about. She thought it was illogical too. Said she had applied such certificates for customers right before final payment dates - no problem.

 

If RCL is going to make a drastic change to how these certificates can be used, they should make some sort of announcement. Those of us who use them are frequent cruisers - many of whom have used them in the past. You can't change the rules without telling people!

[molly361]

That part has always been the case to my knowledge. You always had to use the certificate in the quarter it was issued.

 

The issue that people are reporting is that C&A is telling them the cruise itself has to be booked in the same quarter that the certificates are valid. This would be a change from how certificates have been handled in the past.

 

 

Then I also read a post from someone that was able to have an expired certificate applied. She had said that the C and A rep went and looked at old ones and gave them credit. :eek:

 

PS I called them last week and had one applied to an old booking with no problem

[molly361]

My guess since there have been so many reports of this problem is that they are going to change the terms on these savings certiificates.

 

It does not seem to make much sense to me. I have seen on other threads posts from people who have already cancelled and re-booked, making more work for everyone.:rolleyes::confused:

[bouhunter]

I see someone else started a similar thread as this last night that I hadn't noticed. Sounds like there are some inconsistencies that RCCL needs to address. I may call back tomorrow, nothing to lose and it's 25.00.

 

Next cruise will make us Diamond and the balcony discount after that will negate most savings certs, so we won't have to worry about dealing with all their fine print and rules on the certs.......:rolleyes:

[Clarea]

My guess since there have been so many reports of this problem is that they are going to change the terms on these savings certiificates.

 

It does not seem to make much sense to me. I have seen on other threads posts from people who have already cancelled and re-booked, making more work for everyone.:rolleyes::confused:

Either that, or they just mis-trained a bunch of CSR's and now they have to fix it.:rolleyes:

[cruisenfever]

I just sent an email to my PC contact at C&A. My question to her was as follows.....

 

"Question regarding the C&A Savings Certificates. Has there been a change in the procedure for applying a certificate? What I mean is, can a certificate be applied to an existing reservation or does it have to be booked during the quarter that the Certificate is available"?

Her answer to me...........

 

"You are correct in saying that the cruise has to be booked during the quarter that the Savings Certificate is issued for. Our saving certificates have always had a book between date, but along the way exceptions were made to apply saving certificates to bookings as long it was booked in or prior to the current quarter. That exception became the norm... With our new booking system rolling out very soon it will only let us apply certificates if it is valid at that time. So we are reinforcing the true policy now to get everybody ready for that adjustment".

 

[molly361]

I just sent an email to my PC contact at C&A. My question to her was as follows.....

 

"Question regarding the C&A Savings Certificates. Has there been a change in the procedure for applying a certificate? What I mean is, can a certificate be applied to an existing reservation or does it have to be booked during the quarter that the Certificate is available"?

 

Her answer to me...........

 

"You are correct in saying that the cruise has to be booked during the quarter that the Savings Certificate is issued for. Our saving certificates have always had a book between date, but along the way exceptions were made to apply saving certificates to bookings as long it was booked in or prior to the current quarter. That exception became the norm... With our new booking system rolling out very soon it will only let us apply certificates if it is valid at that time. So we are reinforcing the true policy now to get everybody ready for that adjustment".

 

 

 

Thanks Patti!! Interesting. Now I wonder what their "new booking system" is or will be??

[Clarea]

I just sent an email to my PC contact at C&A. My question to her was as follows.....

 

"Question regarding the C&A Savings Certificates. Has there been a change in the procedure for applying a certificate? What I mean is, can a certificate be applied to an existing reservation or does it have to be booked during the quarter that the Certificate is available"?

Her answer to me...........

 

"You are correct in saying that the cruise has to be booked during the quarter that the Savings Certificate is issued for. Our saving certificates have always had a book between date, but along the way exceptions were made to apply saving certificates to bookings as long it was booked in or prior to the current quarter. That exception became the norm... With our new booking system rolling out very soon it will only let us apply certificates if it is valid at that time. So we are reinforcing the true policy now to get everybody ready for that adjustment".

 

Thanks Patti, I appreciate the info.

 

Royal has always put lengthy terms and conditions on just about everything. It's interesting that they say it's been an existing exception, even though the "book between" date restriction has never made it into writing.

[cruisenfever]

Thanks Patti!! Interesting. Now I wonder what their "new booking system" is or will be??

 

Thanks Patti, I appreciate the info.

 

Royal has always put lengthy terms and conditions on just about everything. It's interesting that they say it's been an existing exception, even though the "book between" date restriction has never made it into writing.

You're welcome. Figured I'd better ask now before I forget.

 

Looks like for those that are currently able to have a Savings Certificate applied to an existing reservation, that will not be the case in the very near future. Take advantage of it while you can.

[molly361]

Thanks Patti, I appreciate the info.

 

Royal has always put lengthy terms and conditions on just about everything. It's interesting that they say it's been an existing exception, even though the "book between" date restriction has never made it into writing.

 

 

They will probably add for NEW BOOKINGS ONLY so those people can't cancel and re-book

[Ocean Boy]

Thanks Patti, I appreciate the info.

 

Royal has always put lengthy terms and conditions on just about everything. It's interesting that they say it's been an existing exception, even though the "book between" date restriction has never made it into writing.

 

Oh yes it did. For a short period of time they were releasing coupons that had two dates on them. The cruise had to be booked between the two dates. That did not last very long and the start date was removed. I remember this because coupons that were being mailed (remember when they did that?) had two dates and the ones on the website only had an expiration date. There were two different sets of rules depending on the source of the coupons even though they were for the same cruises and same amount of discount. This generated A LOT of discussion around here.

[pcur]

You're welcome. Figured I'd better ask now before I forget.

 

Looks like for those that are currently able to have a Savings Certificate applied to an existing reservation, that will not be the case in the very near future. Take advantage of it while you can.

 

Thank you, Patti. I only look at the certificates in case we go again with my MIL, because she books inside or PR cabins at a single rate and a discount helps with the single supplement.

 

*****************************************************************

 

In reply to DHADEN:

 

We are early bookers, and I would say out of 20 cruises I will change my mind 4 times, so that's 20% of the bookings are cancelled for another one.

 

My perspective on this is RCCL gets my deposit money early, and has use of that money. It's good for their cash flow, and they have always encouraged early bookings as long as they have been in business. I can remember getting their new brochures from the local travel agent in the 1970's and always looking at the "early bird" discounts. But, at that time they only put out their itineraries 6 - 9 months in advance, and they were pretty much limited to the Caribbean, maybe Mexico.

 

But, right now they seem to want to book as many cabins as possible as early as possible for the cash flow. I think this is why they push future cruise sales so hard on board the ship: they actually reward people for early bookings with obc and reduced deposits.

 

I think your complaint is better suited if it's directed at RCCL's booking policies, and I think the win-win situation for everyone is RCCL should hold some of the premium cabins for later bookings.

[Clarea]

Oh yes it did. For a short period of time they were releasing coupons that had two dates on them. The cruise had to be booked between the two dates. That did not last very long and the start date was removed. I remember this because coupons that were being mailed (remember when they did that?) had two dates and the ones on the website only had an expiration date. There were two different sets of rules depending on the source of the coupons even though they were for the same cruises and same amount of discount. This generated A LOT of discussion around here.

Thanks, that must have been before I started paying attention.:o

[printingchick]

 

In reply to DHADEN:

 

We are early bookers, and I would say out of 20 cruises I will change my mind 4 times, so that's 20% of the bookings are cancelled for another one.

 

My perspective on this is RCCL gets my deposit money early, and has use of that money. It's good for their cash flow, and they have always encouraged early bookings as long as they have been in business. I can remember getting their new brochures from the local travel agent in the 1970's and always looking at the "early bird" discounts. But, at that time they only put out their itineraries 6 - 9 months in advance, and they were pretty much limited to the Caribbean, maybe Mexico.

 

But, right now they seem to want to book as many cabins as possible as early as possible for the cash flow. I think this is why they push future cruise sales so hard on board the ship: they actually reward people for early bookings with obc and reduced deposits.

 

I think your complaint is better suited if it's directed at RCCL's booking policies, and I think the win-win situation for everyone is RCCL should hold some of the premium cabins for later bookings.

 

 

Ditto. I too always book very early - typically a year to 18 months ahead of sail date. In 10 cruises, I have moved a booking once (from Liberty to Freedom, same week, slightly different itinerary) and cancelled a booking once (when I lost my job during a company lay-off). As you can see, I'm still 8 months from my sail date. I booked my hotel already...in fact, I booked it in FEBRUARY, 13 months in advance. I will be purchasing my plane tickets as soon as my dates become available. I plan early, but not to snag and hold an in-demand cabin. I've never even had a balcony cabin, much less a suite! I'm just someone who likes to plan ahead and, as pcur said, it's beneficial for everyone. The cruise line gets my money way in advance ($200 of my current booking was paid in 2010, in the form of a purchased NextCruise certificate!) and they can pretty much count on me to be on the cruise I book.

 

In terms of the new Savings Certificate policy, again, it's nonsense for me. It's just going to cause everyone a lot of hassle to cancel and rebook. Is it worth it for that $125??

 

I'm not typically a whiner, but this sounds like one more perk they want to take away from C&A members.

[Ocean Boy]

They are really clamping down on the discounts.

 

My opinion - there are a lot of people who book cruises as soon as the itineraries come out (sometimes as long as 2 years out) and grab up the best cabins. (Grand Suites, Aft cabins, Hump cabins, etc.). I've heard of people with as many as 15 cruises booked, and then as it gets closer to "Final Payment", they pick the one or two they want and cancel the others. No loss because they still get their entire deposit back.

 

Other people (my opinion - us regular folks) who want to go on a cruise and try to plan 6-12 months in advance are screwed. I tried to book a cruise a year in advance, and get a Grand Suite and they are all taken. Then it's just a crap shoot as to when one is released.

 

I think RCI is limiting how you can take advantage of the discounts because of this.

I have even suggested to them that they should keep $100 of the deposit if someone books way out and then waits until final payment to cancel.

What do you think? Go ahead - bring it on. ;):p

 

First of all, if someone has 15 cruises booked it means RCI is holding on to $7500.00 of deposit money ($15,000.00 if we are talking suites). I'm sure RCI has no complaints about that. I also suspect that they did this (double deposit) to ward off the exact problem that you mentioned of trying to find a GS 6 - 12 months out.

 

Secondly, people who book way out are probably booking something other than inside or OV cabins so even if a coupon comes out later it is of no use against most C&A balcony discounts. So it is immaterial to the subject of this thread which is the C&A coupons. And inside and OV cabins can be found on almost any sailing the week before the ship departs. So the coupon incentive is not limiting anyone from being to book a cruise.

 

Thirdly, you suggested RCI have a non-refundable $100.00 cancellation fee. RCI is already providing a lot of incentive, because of some of their policies, for plenty of people to put off booking until later. I think that they should be careful about adding more fuel to that strategy. Imagine if more people adopt that method of booking. Six months out from sailing RCI finds themselves with an empty ship and here comes a sale to get people to book. Maybe not a bad idea for the consumer but not of much benefit to RCI's bottom line. And since you are suggesting to RCI that they keep our deposit money I can only think that RCI's bottom line much be your first priority.

 

OK, you asked.

[Ashland]

I just sent an email to my PC contact at C&A. My question to her was as follows.....

 

"Question regarding the C&A Savings Certificates. Has there been a change in the procedure for applying a certificate? What I mean is, can a certificate be applied to an existing reservation or does it have to be booked during the quarter that the Certificate is available"?

 

Her answer to me...........

 

"You are correct in saying that the cruise has to be booked during the quarter that the Savings Certificate is issued for. Our saving certificates have always had a book between date, but along the way exceptions were made to apply saving certificates to bookings as long it was booked in or prior to the current quarter. That exception became the norm... With our new booking system rolling out very soon it will only let us apply certificates if it is valid at that time. So we are reinforcing the true policy now to get everybody ready for that adjustment".

 

Patti...Just wondering where those booked "between" dates are listed in the T&C's..? I can easily find the book by expiration date..

[icsys]

They are really clamping down on the discounts.

 

My opinion - there are a lot of people who book cruises as soon as the itineraries come out (sometimes as long as 2 years out) and grab up the best cabins. (Grand Suites, Aft cabins, Hump cabins, etc.). I've heard of people with as many as 15 cruises booked, and then as it gets closer to "Final Payment", they pick the one or two they want and cancel the others. No loss because they still get their entire deposit back.

 

Other people (my opinion - us regular folks) who want to go on a cruise and try to plan 6-12 months in advance are screwed. I tried to book a cruise a year in advance, and get a Grand Suite and they are all taken. Then it's just a crap shoot as to when one is released.

 

I think RCI is limiting how you can take advantage of the discounts because of this.

I have even suggested to them that they should keep $100 of the deposit if someone books way out and then waits until final payment to cancel.

 

What do you think? Go ahead - bring it on. ;):p

 

Why should the many be penalised for the few?

 

If you cancel then you should lose the entire deposit!

This happens in the UK already.

 

I guess most people book because they want to go on that cruise.

If its a genuine reason for cancelling then claim on the travel insurance.

[Ashland]

They are really clamping down on the discounts.

 

My opinion - there are a lot of people who book cruises as soon as the itineraries come out (sometimes as long as 2 years out) and grab up the best cabins. (Grand Suites, Aft cabins, Hump cabins, etc.). I've heard of people with as many as 15 cruises booked, and then as it gets closer to "Final Payment", they pick the one or two they want and cancel the others. No loss because they still get their entire deposit back.

 

Other people (my opinion - us regular folks) who want to go on a cruise and try to plan 6-12 months in advance are screwed. I tried to book a cruise a year in advance, and get a Grand Suite and they are all taken. Then it's just a crap shoot as to when one is released.

 

I think RCI is limiting how you can take advantage of the discounts because of this.

I have even suggested to them that they should keep $100 of the deposit if someone books way out and then waits until final payment to cancel.

 

What do you think? Go ahead - bring it on. ;):p

Disagree....Many of us that book when the itinerary opens are getting our cabins/locations at (usually) one of the best value rates...On the rare occasion that those are cancelled, those prime cabins but at much higher rates are returned to RCI to sell..so RCI has had our original deposit and then gets the cabin back to make even more money usually up front due to final payment timeframe .Book the cabin available to you at time of booking and keep checking for the cabin you wish you had booked if you had done it sooner .

 

How generous of you to suggest RCI keep a portion of the original deposit...is this the best option you can come up with to assure yourself you will have a choice of cabins when you're ready to book....come on now :rolleyes: